Dunedin Easter Camp - AWESOME - 7th May 2019

Dunedin Easter Camp Keeps Growing!

The camp has outgrown the Tirohanga Campsite and is starting to fill up the A&P Showgrounds...

Dunedin Easter Camp this year was awesome. Over 200 young people along with their youth leaders and volunteers came together over the Easter weekend. They celebrated the Easter story, grew stronger as youth groups and connected with youth from across the city and beyond.

In terms of weather, we were blessed to be able to set up and pack down in the sun. There was some drizzle over the middle portion of camp, but not enough to dampen spirits.

The content of camp was fantastic! Our speakers did a great job telling the Easter story and giving young people an opportunity to hear the gospel and respond. Our speakers came from Leith Valley Presbyterian Church, Elim Dunedin, Nations Church Dunedin and Reach Church Oamaru.

The worship team did a phenomenal job leading the young people in sung worship. The transformation of the A&P showgrounds barn into a space that Hillsong would have been proud of was a massive effort but one that was well worth it. Every day young people were able to enter into a space where they knew they would be able to encounter and experience a living God.

The programme was full of fun activities for the youth to participate in. There were wide games consisting of an “Old School Olympics” and “Games of Doom,” sports, arrow tag (think paintball but with padded bow ‘n’ arrows instead), game shows, movies, crazy games, dance parties, knitting groups, drawing classes, baking expos and more.

And the food...wow! It’s not an easy task to cater for 250 people at a venue which has only a domestic oven and a microwave. But Liz and Steve Christensen, who have been cooking for Dunedin Easter Camp for over a decade now, provided everyone with unbelievably delicious food...well above the category of “camp food.” It helps that they have access to their own commercial catering kitchen and are phenomenal cooks! 250 people went home from camp feeling like they had been eating at a restaurant for the last four days.

Youth Pastors who brought young people along spoke of the positive effect Dunedin Easter Camp had on their young people. Karo from Weston Presbyterian Church said “It was awesome to see our young people letting go, and unashamedly worshipping God in a way we don’t often see in our own church. For a number of our youth, it was also a matter of experiencing the Holy Spirit in a way that was unique and personal for them. It was awesome!” Lizzie from Invercargill reflects that she saw “so much unity as so many leaders worked together to make camp happen. I noticed youth spiritually hungry and ready to encounter God. Easter Camp provided great spaces for youth communities to have meaningful times of discussion and prayer for each other.”

If you want to get a glimpse of what Dunedin Easter Camp looked like, then you can watch the highlights video here.

If you want to see what the ODT had to say about Dunedin Easter Camp, then you can read their article here.